The sport of RC has giving me the pleasure that comes with visiting so many countries where I have met with many people and gained many international friendships. In short, I have enjoyed what RC has given me over the years, and when the opportunity arose to put my name forward for a role with FEMCA it was a natural progression from racer to administration. I also personally hold the values that IFMAR was first based on, and I will continue to try where I can along with the backing of my fellow FEMCA executive members to uphold those values.

In 1979 IFMAR was conceived as a way to bring the fragmented world of RC under a single governing body, heading that drive to form IFMAR was the Late Ted Longshaw. The main objectives were a uniform set of rules, which means everyone races under the same guidelines World Wide. The IFMAR constitution promotes international friendship and sportsmanship, but we also know the will to win along with the boasting rights that come with that in today’s very competitive RC racing environment do not always make those objectives easy to maintain.

Today the world of competitive RC racing is so very different to that of the past, but our objectives still remain the same as when IFMAR was first conceived. My concern is for the future and where it’s heading, with the level of professionalism in the sport, maintaining a realistic Professional versus Amateur balance is very important. As this is a very difficult and ever changing balance to maintain, but it is the amateur racer who will ultimately determine the growth and survival of our sport. For now, all we ask is very simple, and that is for the average club driver to back and upport your local club. As the entire sport / industry of RC actually depends on the average club driver, this is the grass roots of the sport and these are the people paying race fees, buying the equipment, that the clubs and the entire RC industry depend on to survive.

We hope to see you at FEMCA events in the future as we are endeavouring to host more events to give more people the opportunity to enjoy the friendship that RC can bring. We host these events for your benefit, so please take advantage of these opportunities to become involved.

Finally I would like to acknowledge the value John and Marion Grant brought to FEMCA and IFMAR during their term and help and support I have received from them since. FEMCA has also been incredibly privileged over the years to have had the support from other such major bnefactors as Chira Ratanarat and Charlie Siribodhi from Thailand. More recently joining the FEMCA team is Masami Hirosaka who brings with him the JMRCA team.

There are many other supporters, especially those who have hosted IFMAR & FEMCA events, and we will bring you more on these people at a later date.